Friday, March 02, 2012

Bahrain: Endurance ride preparations on

THE Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation (Breef) has stepped up preparations for the Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa Adults Endurance Horse Ride, to be held tomorrow.

Set to take place at the Bahrain International Endurance Village in Sakhir, the event will be over 100km and offers valuable awards, including three Toyota 4x4 cars that will be given away to the top three riders.

A veterinary examination is scheduled for today from 3pm to 5pm at the village. The veterinary commission is being headed by Dr Abbas Al Haiki of Bahrain.

The federation also named the officials for the ground jury. Dhafi Al Merri of Qatar was appointed president of ground jury, which also includes Bahrain's Ghalib Al Alawi, Abdulsamad Al Bosta, Mahdi Al Kalati, Fahad Al Rumaihi and Ali Ghuloom.

Mohammed Dadulla is the foreign technical delegate, Jordan's Haider Al Zu'bi was named chief steward while Abdulla Al Rumaihi is the event steward.

The race will feature four stages. The first will be over 30km, while the second will also cover 30km. The third stage will be over 20km, while the fourth and final stage also covers 20km.

Tomorrow's event will be held under the patronage of Breef president and first vice-chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa.

Shaikh Khalid said that races in Bahrain differ from those of other countries due to the large number of stables and horses, which underlines the kingdom's great interest in this sport. He highlighted the efforts of the board of directors of the federation in developing endurance competitions.

Meanwhile, Royal Endurance Team will head into this event as the top favourites.

The team, captained by Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, comprise some of the kingdom's most prominent riders. They include Abdulrahman Al Zayed, Raed Mahmood and Abdulrahman Al Saad, who all expressed keenness to put forward their best performance and win the competition.

On his part, Al Ruwaie Stable captain Khalid Al Ruwaie said his team is well-prepared for tomorrow's ride, which promises to be one of the most interesting rides in the season.

Al Ruwaie also said that his team includes the youngest participant in the championship, 14-year-old Rashid Khalid Al Ruwaie, who is making his debut in endurance ride championships.